There are a lot of challenging things we face as parents, and one of those things is how do you answer your kids questions about God?
“Do cats go to heaven? What does God look like? If Adam and Eve didn’t sin will we all be naked?” Do you ever get questions like these?
We are our kids’ first teachers, and we are the ones our kids will come to first with their questions about God. So it’s our responsibility to give the answers, as best we can.
Proverbs 22:6 says,
Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.
Deuteronomy 6:6-7 says,
And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.
God makes it clear it is our job to answer our kids questions. What joy we can have when we realize the answers we give, and the lessons we teach, will impact our children’s lives and their eternity!
So how do we answer our kids questions? Here are three ways.
How to Answer Your Kids’ Questions About God
1. Share what you do know regularly. Read Bible Stories together. Talk about how our world was created by God. Share Jesus’ words. Explain Proverbs and what they mean. There is so much we do know about God from His Word. As we read and share God’s Word, our kids will learn and grow in their faith. We’ll give them a strong foundation for any questions they do have now and in the future.
2. Answer the best you can, and let your kids know you have questions, too. Kids ask tough questions and some of these questions aren’t clearly answered in the Bible. When it comes to giving an answer to your kids’ questions, do the best you can. Also, let your kids know that you wonder about things, too. The good news is that some day we will have all the answers. What we now know in part; then we shall know fully (1 Corinthians 13:12).
3. Find good resources. While we may wish we had all the time in the world to search out answers to our kids’ questions, sometimes the best thing to do is find a good resource. One book I’m especially excited about is 365 Bible Answers for Curious Kids, releasing soon. A perfect gift for Christmas, this daily devotional answers questions about God, the Bible, and faith. The devotional addresses topics such as Christian traditions, the historic growth of Christianity, how to become a Christian, and what it means to be a Christian in today’s world. Resources like this one can help us guide our kids. I’ll definitely be sharing this book with my children. I’m eager to discover what good conversations will come out of this as my children grow and learn! I know you will enjoy the same. This great book is an expanded follow-up to another great tool, If I Could Ask God Anything. Used together, these books are sure to help you answer most of your kids’ most curious questions!
Your Turn!
What are your favorite methods or tools for answering those hard-to-answer questions your kids love to ask?
Tricia Goyer
Tricia Goyer is a busy mom of ten, grandmother of two, and wife to John. Somewhere around the hustle and bustle of family life, she manages to find the time to write fictional tales delighting and entertaining readers and non-fiction titles offering encouragement and hope. A bestselling author, Tricia has published more than fifty books to date and has written more than 500 articles. She is a two-time Carol Award winner, as well as a Christy and ECPA Award nominee. In 2010, she was selected as one of the Top 20 Moms to Follow on Twitter by SheKnows.com. Tricia is also on the blogging team at TheBetterMom.com and other homeschooling and Christian sites. In addition to her roles as mom, wife and author, Tricia volunteers around her community and mentors teen moms. She is the founder of Hope Pregnancy Ministries in Northwestern Montana, and she currently leads a Teen MOPS Group in Little Rock, AR. Learn more about Tricia at www.triciagoyer.com.
